A Cleveland, NY Elementary School Finds Building Character Boosts Performance

Cleveland Elem Students get a healthy dose of character education as school starts.

Credit Chris Bolt/WAER News

Public Schools started this week…and one Central New York school is trying to pack in much more than the Core Curriculum. Cleveland Elementary in Oswego County has a commitment to “Character Education.”

“At this age, 9- or 10-years-old, they appreciate that I am interested in what they think. There’s a lot of power in that. I’m not just giving them information; I’m forcing them to think about the information.”

“I think they’re starting to realize that there’s something out there bigger than they are, their little community. And this is great because it’s multicultural and we don’t have the diversity here.”

Principal Michael Smolnik (right) uses character education materials from Ralph Singh's Wisdom Thinkers at Cleveland Elementary, where values and expectations are very public.

Credit Chris Bolt/WAER News

Cleveland elementary principal Michael Smolnik talks about creating citizens…that benefit the community…which he says has brought support and pride from the residents.

“I know there’s tremendous pressure there in terms of graduation rate and getting kids college and career ready. But a lot of these things have provided us with that foundation of caring and trust and school connectedness, which again, in turn, allow us to push the limits academically.”

Smolnik says it all can also make students more connected to their schools and education…and he believes character education is a national movement.